The News of the World tabloid said the FA had offered it details of Eriksson's affair with an FA secretary on the condition the paper stayed silent about the same woman's fling with the FA's chief executive Mark Palios.

The paper printed a transcript of a phone call in which the FA's director of communications, Colin Gibson, seemingly tried to make the deal.

According to the paper, the call took place the day before it first published details of Eriksson's alleged affair with Faria Alam last Sunday.

The FA's press officer Adrian Bevington refused to comment.

"We have nothing to say. At the moment we have to evaluate the reports and take things further if needed," he said.

Meanwhile, Gibson told BBC Radio that the full details of the situation were known by the FA.

"I fully complied with the FA inquiry, gave them complete details of the events of 24 July, including transcripts of telephone calls, my minute-to-minute movements and also supplied a complete list of telephone calls," he said.

"The FA knew about the details last week and the attempts to broker a deal."

Eriksson's future as national coach has been placed in jeopardy after the FA called an urgent meeting next week to discuss claims he misled the organisation over his alleged affair with Alam.

The 56-year-old Swede may be charged with gross misconduct and dismissed from his post if he is found to have lied about his relationship with Alam.

However the issue is further complicated by the fact that Palios, a divorced father of five, also had a fling with Alam.

Palios was attempting a reconciliation with his ex-partner and was extremely keen to keep the affair out of the media, Gibson said, according to the News of the World.

"What I'm proposing is that I give you chapter and verse on Sven," he is quoted as saying, telling the paper that Alam would give an interview confirming the affair with Eriksson.

"And the pay off, obviously, is that we leave MP (Mark Palios) out of it," Gibson said.

Despite widespread reports that the FA plans to fire the Swede at next Thursday's meeting, Eriksson has insisted he will carry on with the job.

Adding to the confusion, leading employment lawyers have been cited as saying the FA might have a shaky case dismissing someone simply for not being open about a love affair, while England players such as Frank Lampard and John Terry have publicly backed their coach.